You are Invited to Grasp the “Sahaj” Sense of Unity and A Sahaja Yogini’s Journey from Romania to Burlington Canada in Two 2026 Interviews with Ioana Popa (100 Seeds of Joy)

We will also share some Photos I took across Canada (not only from Halton) to enjoy its Natural Spiritual Beauty. Any chance you get, come and Visit us HERE!

You might not know it, but overwhelmingly, the Burlingtonians will tell you They Love their Community, so there is No Surprise that these Two Interviews are also Declarations of Love

This year, somehow the blossoming of our 100 Seeds of Joy community initiative was more evident than ever. We are sharing in this article two (of more) interviews with one of the volunteers from Sahaja Yoga Meditation Network – based in this beautiful Halton region of the Canadian Ontario province.

The first article is based on the interview with Ioana earlier this year, as part of a larger Project launched in Halton by the organization that is embracing such initiatives as the one offered by the SYMN – 100 Seeds of Joy team.

Many thanks to Philip who reached out on behalf of the project and published this article (the text is shared below but also the link to the original published article). Enjoy!

100 Seeds of Joy (Sahaja Yoga Meditation Network): Cultivating a sense of unity

What have you most loved and appreciated about the work of the organization that you are involved in?

“I cannot even call it an organization. Sahaja Yoga Meditation Network is really a family.” It’s “a family made of people from all around the world.” We build with each other. “The people are pure and strong, and they allow each of us to grow individually while building something together.”

For me, “connection is felt in the heart.” There are beautiful people everywhere. What we have created is not just well-organized events, “but a space where people feel held.” That’s what I’ve most loved and appreciated.

The image above is with some of the Romanian Canadians involved in our 100 Seeds of Joy community initiative – after they received the appreciation from the Romanian Consul in Toronto who joined with her family the “Festival of New Beginnings” in 2025 celebrating 20 years of Sahaja Yoga Meditation in Burlington & volunteers that kept it alive and thriving these years.

Let’s continue with Ioana’s interview, following the questions and answers shared below:

What is your connection to the organization, and why is it so important to you?

I come from the Romanian community. As a student back in Romania, I met the founder of Sahaja Yoga Meditation – Shri Mataji Nirmala Devi, and it transformed me. I understood what “self-realization” means and that’s what I was searching for. That’s how I started volunteering as a meditation instructor in my free time. In my first year as a new immigrant to Canada, about 25 years ago I continued volunteering by offering free Sahaja yoga meditation classes for Romanian immigrants because they were very stressed. I wasn’t sure if anyone else would be interested, but I spoke to the manager, and they were very impressed. They said yes, absolutely, and asked if others could join.

I said everyone is welcome.

Funny enough, the vast majority were Russians, immigrants, Filipinos. We had just a few Romanians, and it was lovely. They loved it. It was such a successful experience. “That’s when I knew this was bigger than one community.” Once I moved with my family to the Halton region I continued volunteering and offering free meditation and wellness classes open to everyone. Recently, with Sahaja Yoga Meditation Network of Halton volunteers we founded the 100 Seeds of Joy community initiative that provided 515 free wellness classes and events in 2025 alone.

What is happening through this organization that you would like to see more of?

For me, meditation is not something to check off a box. “It can become a spiritual journey.” Yoga is not physical exercise. “Yoga means union, connection—within yourself and with others.”

Sahaja Yoga Meditation is open to both religious and non-religious people. “We have atheists joining our classes.” We have people from many backgrounds. “You can take it as deep as you want. It’s a philosophy of integration.”

What I want to see more of is this “sense of union.”

Intermezzo: only recently I’ve noticed these postings made by the active Halton community members who are Not part of our organization, how they felt like sharing this interview on various platforms and working on these ads. I am speechless. Thank you!

What would you like to see happen next for the organization?

“The person who teaches certainly makes a difference, even the space makes a difference.” That’s why we focus on creating environments where people feel safe, grounded, and connected.

I would love to see more spaces like this — places where people can slow down, reflect, and grow together.

What would you want or need from the community to make your next steps successful?

Everyone is welcome to join us. That’s always been true. We build community “by being open, by being present,” and by remembering that connection is what sustains us.

If all those good things happened, what could be made possible in our community that wasn’t possible before?

“More people finding their way back to themselves.” More people realizing “they don’t have to do this alone.” When people feel connected — within themselves and with others — and achieve the self-realization collectively, everything changes.

Story curated by Phillip McAllister; we hope to meet you, Heather, Rishia and everyone else at events or this year’s Congress.

Independently, Alexa published the following Interview (from which we are sharing snippets below) as she wanted to know and introduce the Good Things’ new co-host to the Burlington community

On a separate note, Burlington has developed such a beautiful culture, I could not resist Not sharing this image I took when I was collecting the Mayor’s Proclamation for May 5th, 2026 as “Sahaja Yoga Meditation Day“:

Enjoy most of Ioana’s Interview for Burlington Today’s Spaces in August 2026:

We are sharing some snippets from the interview that was published in the local news, so also our friends from Europe and elsewhere can enjoy it; sometimes the link to publications in some parts of the world are not accessible everywhere.

It was lovely to see that the BT Reporter included another posting and image from a beautiful event offered for Burlington Seniors by Halton’s 100 Seeds of Joy Team from Sahaja Yoga Meditation Network with the participation of Ekaterina Lavrentyeva – Musician and Meditator visiting from Montreal

We hope you’ve enjoyed the Article – post your comments by the end, Thank you.

You might want to watch this short video-clip and try a simple (sahaj) meditation exercise recorded live during the Adam’s Day annual event offered by the Sufi Azeemi Canada Healing group. It included a flute music flow. Enjoy!

Let us know if anything shared in the interviews or video also resonated with you. Thank you.